Opening Statement for IAEA General Conference

Good morning everybody. It's great to welcome you again for our general conference. This year we are defeating every record in participation. Almost 4,000 participants are coming for this important uh event. I would also like to start by welcoming our um timolesti uh colleagues here. It's good to have another loosant sean bendos. Uh it's great to have you here. We are 182. uh now thank you Monica for your statement and since this is the first time we are sharing a common space let me congratulate you uh also on the assumption of your important functions every success to you we are very proud to to have you uh here so 182 but 70 years ago we were not 182 we were only 56 and that conference 70 years ago did not take place here because this place did not exist thanks to the Austrian generosity which has been extended to the IEA and until these days as a model host country we were meeting at that time at the Vina Cona house maybe some of you those who live here have been there is a beautiful place um the ornate uh uh halls um of the concert house hosted that first conference and at that first conference the first director general of the IEA uh Sterling Cole um already foresaw the challenges and the difficulties that we could have in the discharge of our duties and he said at that time that uh success would not uh follow day as it follows night and it might be uh difficult but he was inviting those attending uh to express a shared uh common spirit of dedication I think is what he said and I can say that uh today and in spite of the difficulties and the tensions that we see in the world. We have we have already seen some of that in the debates this morning. This common spirit of dedication we see at the at the IEA. We see it in the cancer experts uh helping and training oncologists in Africa um in neighboring countries. We see it in IEA nuclear safety experts at the front lines of war trying to avoid a nuclear accident. We see it in the silent work of the safeguards inspectors doing what they have to do. We see it in all of these uh uh manifestations. Yes, there are challenges but I think we can take um satisfaction in the fact that this uh spirit is uh is there and in spite of uh these um um difficulties these these problems we have we also have uh progress and I think it's important to uh mention it uh as well. One year ago, I was mentioning here from this rostroom that I had just returned from Syria where I had met President Al-Shara. As you know, uh there were important doubts and question marks about activities that had been taking place and might have implied a recourse to the development of nuclear weapons in that country. Well, one year later, I can tell you that uh last week in a very very important unprecedented uh decision, the uh AAA confirmed the uh resolution of the non-compliance of uh Syria um of its safeguards obligations. I was uh roughly a month ago at the dial sewer site and other sites where we had all the access and information that uh we needed to solve uh this uh issue. So this is I think uh at these times where multilateralism the role of the United Nations the role of the IEA the role of these institutions is sometimes put into question. we can see how important these instruments can be to move problems from the column of the concerning issues to the column of normaly and I think we have achieved that and we should be uh proud of this achievement. Of course, there are uh issues and there are pending issues and we already had some discussions uh earlier this morning about the nuclear program, the Islamic Republic of Iran and we know how difficult uh this situation is as the conflict uh goes on. I wish to invite yet again uh Iran to engage with us. We all know, we all know that in spite of all the difficulties and in spite of the dangers and in spite of the ongoing conflict, we will not have we will not have a predictable situation. We will not have reassurances. We will not have trust. We will not have confidence unless we can work together again. So the IEA extends its hands once again to Iran to invite them to work with us in the clarification of issues that have to do with the nuclear program there and the IAA will be respectful of Iran's um concerns in terms of security in terms of the difficulties and challenges that can exist there but the work on safeguards the work on reassurance of the complete peaceful nature of that program must continue and we are um stubbornly optimistic that we are going to get that uh done uh as well. The work of the IAEA also uh extends to the front lines of war. Um, as you know, uh, Monica, you were refer referring to the secretary general's reference to this situation at the Saborian nuclear power plant where still we are having a very dangerous situation. This plant has uh in the last month of June experienced 10 times a complete loss of external power. You know that with without external power you cannot operate the safety functions that are so indispensable for a nuclear power plant and without which we could have a nuclear accident with radiological uh consequences. The IAEA together with Ukraine and Russia with Russia and Ukraine has successfully negotiated its seventh local ceasefire to allow the necessary repairs to the external power lines to be uh done. yet perhaps a good example of this uh common uh spirit of uh dedication the non-prololiferation regime and ambassador you were presiding over the NPT review conference the 10th review conference that we have had the 11th and we know the debates uh about about it and the difficulties in arriving to uh final consensus among member states but in spite of that in spite of that we know how crucial The norm on the non-prololiferation of nuclear weapons is and will continue to be. We all know that a world with 18, 20 or 25 countries with nuclear weapons will certainly not be a safer world and we have to reinforce this uh norm. It is really uh up to us. Um it may or not be a paradox. But as we mark this uh this uh developments at the same time the world is turning with great sense of optimism to the peaceful uses of nuclear energy. We see it in the big countries in the in the big users of nuclear energy but also in many developing countries that are turning to it because they need it for economic development. They need it for their uh intelligent integrated uh energy mixes and the IEA is there providing for the necessary training, capacity building, technology transfer which is so indispensable uh to allow for a level playing field so everybody as our statute says can benefit uh from it. We have revised in view of what is happening in the world. We have revised our estimates and we see that by60 we could be seeing a tripling of the existing nuclear capacity. All of that need needs strong safeguards and a very strong also and robust safety um standards uh scheme and the IEA is going to be working and continuing its work uh for that. There are at the same time new developments, new things are uh happening. We are all debating uh in in every uh forum and in every circle the pros and cons of artificial intelligence. But the fact of the matter is that this is a reality that is with us and the digital economy needs an energy economy and uh the um alliance if I can put it like that or the convergence between nuclear energy data centers and AI is evident and it is something that we have been uh addressing here at the IEA through uh our conferences and and meetings. atoms for algorithms as they uh say uh small modular reactors also something which is very important but we want because we are the IEA we want this to be extended to all especially developing countries and of course without an appropriate scheme of financing this is not going to be possible. More than one year ago, as you know, we had a historic agreement with the World Bank and after that we have seen how multilateral development banks are approaching the IEA signing agreements. It's amazing. Just a few years ago, cooperation in the nuclear field was prohibited. It was forbidden. Yes. And now we have seen that that page has been turned. a few weeks ago. We have dozens, literally dozens of experts from all development banks, funds, sovereign funds here in Vienna receiving training, receiving information. And this is going to be crucial so that nuclear energy is not reserved for a handful countries. Nuclear energy reaches Africa, reaches Latin America and the Caribbean, reaches also many parts of Asia. And this is why this is so important. and so encouraging uh to see uh new trends. I'm talking about artificial intelligence. I'm talking about SMRs and of course nuclear technology is also being looked at by the shipping industry as the new way forward as the new way to um power uh commercial shipping which is as you know uh the way in which 80% of world trade uh happens. I uh had the great pleasure to um co-host with the Secretary of Energy of the United States who I hope is here uh somewhere and I want to thank him again for having uh so graciously hosted with us uh the launch of Atlas atomic technologies license for applications at C in Washington with the participation of all IA member states without exception. I want to thank the United States for that hospitality and also for the fact that now we are working we are seeing what is necessary with our colleagues from the IMO the international maritime organization in London. So we have all the normative regulatory technological aspects well covered to uh move forward uh with this so important um development also in in nuclear technology applications are so important. Ladies and gentlemen, during this week that we are meeting here all over the world, 300,000 300,000 people are going to be told that they have cancer. And at the current pace and state of technological advancement and cancer treatment availability, half of them will die. If we are born in beautiful Vienna, chances are that you you won't chances are that a cervical cancer or a breast cancer or a prostate cancer will not lead to your death. But if you are born in the developing world, most probably this will be the case. This week the scientific forum of the IEA on race of hope our initiative uh for cancer and radiotherapy for all will take place here and I invite you to participate. We will see the progress we are making from the modest but but lifesaving delivery of a mamography unit to the construction of hospitals cancer centers uh in different parts of Africa. So uh join us for that. We are also making incredible progress when it comes to zodiac our zonotic disease uh integrated action. Some of you those who were here at the time of COVID may remember we launched that initiative h at that time and it was not a photo opportunity. Thanks to that we are helping the Democratic Republic of Congo push back on the Ebola crisis. We have equipped 63 laboratories in 71 countries with capacities that allow them allow them through the use of nuclear uh technology to have the capacity of early detection of pathogens. The same applies to the um spread of the uh sterilization insect technique which is so important for the economy, for human health and for so uh many other things. The same applies to new tech plastics where we are uh helping countries to identify microplastics and work in the protection of the envir of the environment. And I could cite uh more but what I wanted to encapsulate in these words is that this mission of the IEA so unique that covers as I have tried to in this few minutes issues that relate to war and peace to weapons of mass destruction and also for cancer care for saving life is the noblest that can exist. Support us the IEA. Thank you. Welcome to Vienna. Thank you very much. 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